The present invention relates to a method of forming flock patterns on a material, and more particularly to a method of forming flock patterns on a material on the surface of which a predetermined pattern is printed with an adhesive material, and then solidly flocked paper is applied thereon with pressure and heat so that the flock on the paper is transplanted on the material according to the printed predetermined pattern.
Conventional methods for forming flock patterns on a surface of a material, such as the fabric surface of a shirt, by transplanting flock thereon, are disclosed, for example, in Japanese Utility Model Publication Nos. 54-38963 and 54-7413, and Japanese Patent Publication No. 53-35619. According to these conventional methods, a piece of paper to which an adhesive of weak adhesive power is applied is electrostatically flocked, and then a hot melt adhesive is applied to the tips of the short fibers of the flock on the paper according to a predetermined pattern, thereby forming a layer of the hot melt adhesive for transplanting the flock according to the pattern. Next, the adhesive layer pattern on the flocked paper is applied on the surface of the fabric, such as a shirt, with pressure and heat, thereby fusing the adhesive layer on the surface of fabric according the pattern. Thus, the fused adhesive forming the predetermined pattern holds the flock of the flocked paper on the surface of the fabric. Therefore, when the flocked paper is peeled off from the fabric after the adhesive has been cooled and has set, the flock on the paper is transplanted on the surface of the fabric according to the predetermined pattern formed by the adhesive layer for holding the flock.
Thus, when a pattern consisting of flock is to be formed on a fabric according to the conventional methods, a pattern should first be formed with adhesive on the solidly flocked paper.
This means that when no selections for the pattern formed by the adhesive on the flocked papers is performed by consumers, the papers with such patterns become useless.
Further, the conventional methods have the disadvantage that when a predetermined pattern of flock is to be formed and transplanted on a fabric, the pattern should first be formed on the flocked paper with an adhesive.
There has been a further disadvantage in the conventional methods, as will be described below. For example, as shown in FIG. 1, suppose that a hot-melt thermoplastic synthetic resin 2 is used as the patterned adhesive for transplanting the flock 4 planted on the flocked paper 6 to the fabric surface 8. The synthetic resin 2 which is fused by the applied heat adheres to the fabric surface 8. The flock 4, however, consists of very short and ultra-fine fibers of the length of about 0.2 to 1 mm, generally, which is planted on the paper with an adhesive of weak adhesive power. Thus, as shown in FIG. 1, the hot melt adhesive 2 may go through the middle and reach the root portions of the short fibers of the flock, as well as adhering to the tips of the fibers of the flock 4 planted on the paper 6. When the paper 6 is peeled off from the fabric 8 under these circumstances, there appear portions of the flock transplanted on the fabric 8 at which the hot melt adhesive 2 has impregnated to and dried and hardened at the roots of the flock which now forms the outward tips of the fibers of the flock transplanted on the fabric 8, as shown in FIG. 2.
Thus, the flock pattern transplanted and formed on the fabric with predetermined pressure and heat applied thereon under these circumstances tends to have an inferior texture of rough touch and poor outlook.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,138,517 discloses, as prior art, various known methods of ornamenting articles of clothing such as T-shirts. According to one of the disclosed methods, a structure of thermoplastic material in one or more colors is placed on an item of clothing such as a T-shirt, and then transferred to the T-shirt under heat and pressure to form a predetermined desirable pattern.
According to another prior method, a colorless adhesive material in liquid form is first applied to a fabric in a configuration of a desired final design. Then, flock is deposited on the applied adhesive while the adhesive is still wet and sticky to form a desired flock pattern.
The above U.S. Patent also states that since the adhesive bond is not sufficiently strong, the flock can easily separate from the textile article as when it is washed.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,314,813 reveals, as prior art, two processes of transferring flock in a desired pattern using a hot-melt adhesive material. The first process, which is also disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication No. 36058/1978, essentially comprises the steps of:
(1) flocking short fibers on a release paper sheet; PA1 (2) printing a transfer pattern on another sheet with an ink containing a heat-sublimable dye; PA1 (3) applying a hot-melt adhesive to the exposed surface of the transfer pattern of the ink; PA1 (4) peeling the pile layer off the release sheet and placing the pile layer over the transfer sheet; and PA1 (5) applying an adhesive to the other face of the pile layer.
According to the above process, however, as pointed by the inventor Masaki, the heating time is prolonged, and the use of the hot-melt adhesive makes the surfaces of the short fibers lose comfortable touch.
The invention disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,314,813 was proposed to eliminate the above shortcomings. However, since a hot-melt adhesive is used on a pile layer, the surfaces of the short fibers still lack comfortable touch. In addition, as the hot-melt adhesive is applied to the short fibers which have been flocked and dyed, design patterns cannot be produced in multiple colors.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,438,533 shows an electrostatic flock coating method. In this disclosed method, flock fibers are electrostatically attracted also to a material surface devoid of an applied adhesive. Therefore, it is necessary to provide equipment for preventing the flock fibers from being scattered out of a desired area. Furthermore, those flock fibers which are not bonded by the adhesive have to be removed after the flocking step. Such flock fiber removal is tedious and time-consuming.
In view of the aforesaid drawbacks of the conventional process, it is an object of the present invention to provide a method capable of forming a desired design pattern of flock fibers, differently colored if required, on one surface of a material such as a fabric, using a flocked sheet or mount, a silk screen printing apparatus, silk screens of desired pattern, and a heating presser such as an iron, while requiring no electrostatic flocking agent.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a method of transferring a flock pattern of flock fibers to one surface of a material without employing a conventional patterned flock transferring material, by printing a design pattern in the form of an adhesive layer of synthetic resin on the material surface as by the screen printing process, then applying flock fibers on a flock sheet or mount endways to the adhesive layer, pressing with heat the flock fibers against the adhesive layer as with a heating presser such as an iron to bond the flock fibers to the adhesive layer in the design pattern, and peeling the flock sheet off the material surface to transfer the bonded flock fibers from the flock sheet to the material in the design pattern.